HEAD OF HADRIAN (reign 117-138) White marble. Restored nose and nasal bridge (20th century restoration) H. 30 cm (H. 55 cm with base) Roman art, 2nd century. Provenance Former private collection, Marseille In the same family since the 1970s Osenat, 19/06/2021, lot 42 The head is frontal, the face presents the features of a young man with a serious and concerned expression. The hair is worked into short wavy strands and is quite voluminous (due to the hollowing out effect of the drill bit). The moustache and beard frame the face. The eyes are fairly round, although subtly stretched at the outer corners, and framed by hemmed eyelids, the hollow lines revealing dark circles, accentuating the impression of a heavy burden weighing on this representation of a great man. Indeed, the physiognomy is reminiscent of certain portraits of the Emperor Hadrian. Although this portrait has been restored at the level of the nose and the area of the nasal furrows, it can easily be compared with a similar head (fig.1) in the Musei Vaticani, Rome, Atrio dei Quattro Cancelli 3. cf. M. Wegner, Hadrian, Plotina, Marciana, Matidia, Sabina, Das römische Herrscherbild 3 (Berlin 1956), 109 Zenon A Roman marble Head of Hadrian (reign 117-138). 2nd century A.D.